Is This Kid For Real? The Emergence of Josh Freeman
by LeeCaz on Sep 21, 2010 8:00 AM EDT
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PrintNow that I have had a good night's sleep, and have hopefully tempered my homerism a bit, I decided to take a quick look at how the Buccaneers' young quarterback is faring compared to his competition around the NFL. Now keep in mind that these numbers are a bit inflated because of the poor talent we have faced, but nevertheless they are still quite impressive. Although I admittedly disliked the pick in the draft two years ago (I actually threw a half full beer across the room), I have to admit that all the offseason work Freeman put in this year has made a huge difference thus far and translated itself into much more careful play on the field.
He seems like a completely different quarterback than the one we saw throw 18 interceptions in just nine games a year ago. We saw him err on the side of caution numerous times yesterday, and throw the ball away rather than risk a costly turnover. The 3rd down in the Red Zone in the 3rd quarter when we were up 14-7 particulary stands out in my mind. Freeman threw the ball away because he knew that was a gimme field goal and we needed the cushion. I don't think he makes that play last year.
I will hit all the basic stats, because I know and love them. DVOA is great and all, but as a few pointed out last week, they don't tell us much more than the basic stats do until after week 6. Read after the jump to see how Freeman compares to his peers thus far in the 2010 season.
I'll start with everyone's favorite statistic, quarterback rating. Please save the complaints about the merit of quarterback rating for another day. I have decided to include it in this piece and that's that. Here is the formula for QB rating for all you math whizzes out there in case you want to double check the numbers I pulled from Yahoo sports.
a = (((Comp/Att) * 100) -30) / 20
b = ((TDs/Att) * 100) / 5
c = (9.5 - ((Int/Att) * 100)) / 4
d = ((Yards/Att) - 3) / 4
a, b, c and d can not be greater than 2.375 or less than zero.
QB Rating = (a + b + c + d) / .06
NFL Leaders in QB rating through Week 2 (Note: Drew Brees week two numbers are not included in this)
1. Jay Cutler: 121.2
2. Peyton Manning: 121.0
3. Phillip Rivers: 107.0
4. Michael Vick: 105.5
5. Kyle Orton: 103.9
6. Matt Schaub: 102.6
7. Drew Brees: 101.3
8. Mark Sanchez: 96.4
9. Tom Brady: 96.3
10. Josh Freeman: 95.0
11. Aaron Rodgers: 94.0
Completion Percentage: 55.8% NFL rank: 24
Passing Yards: 360 NFL rank: 20
Passing Touchdowns: 4 NFL rank: Tied for sixth (with Matt Schaub, Aaron Rodgers and David Garrard.
Interceptions: 1 NFL rank: Tied for seventh (minimum 20 attempts) with eight others
Sacks: 3 NFL rank: Tied for tenth fewest with eight others
The sack and interception ranking really impress me. Freeman has shown an uncanny ability to avoid sacks thus far this season. His size and athleticism make him very difficult to bring down. I can remember several times yesterday where a smaller or less mobile quarterback would have been sacked, but Freeman kept the play alive. One interception through two games is wonderful. Although I don't think it's a standard he can uphold, it really shows that the front office wasn't just blowing smoke when they spoke of the dedication Freeman had in the film room this offseason.
The completion percentage is really the only stat that I find slightly disturbing, but just as with the good stuff, we have to realize that it is a very small sample size as well. Once Freeman's thumb fully heals he could very well get that completion percentage hovering around 60%, which is the goal he set he had set for himself. (I swear I remember reading this somewhere, but I'm too lazy to look it up.)
Going into this season I expected Freeman to trend towards the bottom of NFL quarterbacks statistically, and for all we know he may very well still do so. However, my personal hopes and expectations have grown quite a bit after the first two starts. Now I hope to see Freeman finish somewhere around league average in most stats, and that is very impressive for a second year quarterback. My preseason prediction of 25 interceptions is looking less and less likely each week, and that is some crow I will happily swallow sans salt and pepper. So what do you think Bucs Nation? Have your expectations for young Mr. Freeman grown after his first two starts, or did you know all along he was going to put it together.
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He really made escaping those big D-Linemen
on that long pass to K2 look effortless. Like he just brushed him off.
Honestly
this doesn’t surprise me at all. Even in the middle of last year, I knew he was going to be good. I mean, he’s just so poised for a young quarterback, it’s amazing. Plus, he’s got a quiet energy, it adds some spark to this offense. I’m telling you guys, he’s going to be the Franchise’s best quarterback ever.
I hope you are right
"Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example." ~ Mark Twain
Well that's not that tall of an order, to be fair
Though poise is all well and good, but you need quality play to go along with that poise too.
Pre-snap/throw away
His Pre-snap reads and adjustments are what I found most impressive. I don’t remember him making protection changes and such in the past…
His completion percentage could be a bit deceiving, I think threw away at least 4-5 balls Sunday…
by Tischnikov on Sep 21, 2010 10:51 AM EDT via mobile reply actions
Very true.
Still, Peyton and Brees occasionally throw balls away but their completion percentages are still consistently above 65%. I’m not trying to harp on the incompletions, but there is still a lot of room for improvement.
"Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example." ~ Mark Twain
What he needs to start doing pre-snap is check out of bad running plays
I saw one particularly bad case last sunday where he just let Caddy run straight into an obvious run blitz.
And throwing away balls is part of the process. I think where it may be a bit deceiving is how far downfield his targets were, as I think we had quite a lot of downfield throws that have a much lower success rate than shorter throws.
They traded up in the draft that year
and the fear crept in. I was hoping for P. Jerry. Praying for the pick to be a defensive tackle. The podium was approached and I hear tampa selects “Quarterback…” Immediately I began to ferociously drink jaeger from the bottle. Someone told me that was the saddest he’d ever seen a man.
In my stomach I knew I wasn’t the only one.
Now, articles like this are popping up all around, and I’m optimistic. These pieces help spread that optimism and rallies fans to get on board and to stop sulking. Nice work.
yeah, me too.
I wanted Jerry as well; boy am I glad we didn’t take him.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 12:33 PM EDT up reply actions
What's wrong with PJ?
Feeding the Monster since 1984
by brotherbrown on Sep 24, 2010 12:19 AM EDT up reply actions
Include me in that
I hated that pick, and I hated it even more because it was a trade up.
Starting to look like I was very wrong. Hopefully I was!
I think against the Steelers his unwillingness to go down may hurt him.
There will be people he doesn’t see as he’s being shifty in the pocket, and he’ll get blindsided and stripped. I feel he’ll fumble at least once, but my guess is twice.
are you sure?
he’s displayed great pocket awareness since the moment he took the field.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 11:56 AM EDT up reply actions
That's being generous
This season, he has shown a lot of improvement in his pocket presence, I agree. However last season still haunts me, and there will be some spill over against great defenses that tend to hit the quarterback multiple times before he hits the ground.
keep in mind
we do have a good pass protecting line as well. It’s not even guarenteed the steelers will touch him. Now i know I’m going to recieve criticism for that statement, but all I mean is that we do offer Freeman great protection.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 12:05 PM EDT up reply actions
plus
he can use his feet to avoid pressure as well
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 12:06 PM EDT up reply actions
I have optimism,
Tampa’s line has looked good pass blocking last week yet he was brought down several times against the Browns. Cleveland has far less talent on their defense than Pittsburgh does. Yes, Freeman can use his feet. I merely think that he will show the youth in him on Sunday when there is constant pressure. This is one of the best blitzing defenses in the league going against Tampa’s line that has provided poor pass protection in week 1 and above average to goo protection in week two. If it weren’t for Freemans legs, Carolina would have sacked him a few times.
If Freeman can avoid being jumpy in the pocket and demonstrate poise, that would be huge. I’d love to be wrong about my fumble prediction, hopefully I will be, but the two defenses he faced previously were garbage compared to what Pittsburgh possesses.
Not really
He was very poised, but he led the league in fumble rate last year and that’s not because his pocket awareness was awesome. Part of it was him carrying the ball far away from his body, but his pocket awareness wasn’t very good. He also got sacked a lot.
coulda sworn
a lot of those were botched snaps.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 12:34 PM EDT up reply actions
He had a lot of fumbles when being sacked too
And when running around, ball being slapped out of his hand.
this is true, Pittsburgh's defense is much stiffer competition
i’ve realized our isn’t too far off though. now, wait a second before anyone rips my head off, because I’m not just talking about yardage. We do allow twice as much rushing yards than they do, however, we have had the better pass defense so far. And also, we have only allowed one more point against us than they have. We both have good defenses, there’s is better. no doubt. The key to me is our offense. There’s is non-existent. How are they going to score??? The key to me is that Freeman has to play like he did this past week and not throw any INT’s. If that happens, I believe we win, without a doubt. Pittsburgh just cannot score unless we GIVE THEM the opportunity.
I still don't see what makes Atlanta's and Tennessee's offenses so special...
Matty Ice is on and off, as is Vince Young.
Michael Turner doesn’t scare me at all.
Roddy White’s play depends all on Matt Ryan.
Tony Gonzalez, unfortunately, has one foot out the door.
only Chris Johnson really poses a consistent threat.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 12:39 PM EDT up reply actions
Whatever you may think of Atlanta's and Tennessee's offenses
They’re a lot better than the Browns and Panthers offenses.
Comparing the two defenses shouldn't be done.
Tampa’s defense hasn’t been seen in full light yet, and they’ve shown to be better than expected, but not yet considered ‘good’. Steelers have great defense year in year out.
you don’t think our defense has played good? I know that both games have been a tale of two halves, but even so, we still ended up dominating on defense. Two second half shutouts, that sounds good to me. Hell, the Steelers haven’t done that this year.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 12:22 PM EDT up reply actions
you have to look at the competition
the steelers have faced offenses that blew out their other two opponents. Tennessee housed the Raiders and Atlanta absolutely slaughtered Arizona. The offenses that Tampa stopped, Cleveland and Carolina, don’t compare. Carolina is one dimensional without a qb and the Browns is just awful.
Tampa’s defense exceeded expectations so far, but to say they are a good defense at this moment is a slight at the better defenses in the league.
Every offense is one dimensional without a QB...
Boom. Outta Here.
by Ryan Gilliss on Sep 21, 2010 12:47 PM EDT up reply actions
Fair point
then again, you see where I’m going with this. those offenses are crap, and carolina at least has steve smith to threaten but with no one to throw to a great receiver its all the more depressing. The browns have cribbs, but he’s not yet an elite receiver.
Carolina lost to a Giants team that looked great...
Boom. Outta Here.
by Ryan Gilliss on Sep 21, 2010 12:50 PM EDT up reply actions
which
goes back to my former point. Trends are nice, but about as concrete and reliable as water. Every week is different. No amount of analysis will ever change that.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 12:56 PM EDT up reply actions
So you're saying team performance is random from game to game?
Because that’s just nonsense.
The Colts beatdown indicated that the Giants were a lot worse than the Colts. The fact that the Giants beat down the Panthers the week before indicates the Panthers were a lot worse than the Giants. I don’t see any disconnect in those indications.
and I can guarentee you
that the Giants CAN beat the colts. It’s not impossible. That’s all I’m really trying to say. Football is about a lot more than trends and stats. I figure you already know that, just a reminder.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 1:01 PM EDT up reply actions
And I never said it was impossible
So I don’t get what your point is there. I’m talking about how likely something is to happen, and the fact that I think the Steelers D is better than the Bucs D, or their showing has been more impressive than the Bucs D so far does not mean the Steelers D is guaranteed to do better on sunday. Just that they’re more likely to.
Yes it does
It means that one team is more likely to win than another. WIll that guarantee anything? Of course it won’t, and I never said it would. But your method is simply throwing any analysis out the window, which means you’re not learning anything about the game. And that’s just a shame.
I can also see you’re simply seeing the spectrum of results in simply ‘will’ or ’won’t’ instead of chances. What are the chances you’d give the Bucs of winning sunday? I’d give them 40% based on the defensive dominance of the Steelers, but the offensive incompetence of the Steelers.
40%?
And you seem to be the most sober guy here.
Man you guys are drinking the kool-aid something bad.
by Thomas Beekers on Sep 21, 2010 1:27 PM EDT up reply actions
citation needed
"Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example." ~ Mark Twain
by LeeCaz on Sep 21, 2010 1:29 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
Try some of JaMarcuses' "Purple Drank"
for a new perspective on things.
by Cracker Ball on Sep 21, 2010 10:25 PM EDT up reply actions
it's all about adjustments
remember the 2007 Giants,
Three of the teams they faced in the playoffs Cowboys 2x, Packers and Patriots they all lost to in the regular season and got blew out a few times. Different story in each of the final meetings.
Feeding the Monster since 1984
by brotherbrown on Sep 24, 2010 12:27 AM EDT up reply actions
and yes, I do believe performance is game to game.
they’re humans, not machines. bad games and let downs exist.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 1:02 PM EDT up reply actions
Are you serious?
You know that there is no proven correlation between a team’s performance against one team and another
Boom. Outta Here.
by Ryan Gilliss on Sep 21, 2010 1:03 PM EDT up reply actions
Are you serious?
Because that’s just not true. Are you seriously suggesting that a great offensive performance one week is just as likely to be followed up by a 6-point performance as it is to be followed up by a 21-point performance?
Yes, fluky results happen. But they’re not likely to. There is most certainly a week-to-week correlation in performance. Otherwise
Hell yeah it is.
Any amount of points can be scored week to week. well, besides 1 point. Any number is as likely to be reached as another, since there’s only one of each number, each has the same chance to be hit. IT’s how the syetemof averages works.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 1:11 PM EDT up reply actions
If you're going to be sports betting on that system
Then you’re going to be out of money really really quickly. That’s not how ‘the system of averages’ works at all. Not every outcome is equally likely just because there are a lot of different numbers. Chances are not a binary system of ‘will or will not happen’.
In fact, 3 points being scored in a game is signficiantly less likely than 21 being scored, but more likely than 520 points being scored in a game. But they’re all numbers, so according to you each has an equally likely chance of occurring.
They probably would have if they had played the Browns and the Panthers
"Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example." ~ Mark Twain
reply failure there.
"Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example." ~ Mark Twain
man,
I’ll be the first to tell you i don’t buy into this garbage about the quality of teams you beat. A win is a win. They’re all hard fought, they’re all earned. Any team can win any given Sunday. Seriously. We beat the Browns, we beat the Panthers. The opponents you beat shouldn’t be the measuring stick, the wins themselves are. We beat the Saints last year, and yes, they were playing serious because they were still fighting for Homefield Advantage throughout the playoffs. We beat them, but we were still 4-12. The wins matter, not the opponents.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 12:32 PM EDT up reply actions
Yes yes, a win is a win and I love all wins
But that doesn’t mean that shutting down the Browns ‘offense’ is just as hard as shutting down the Falcons or Titans offense.
you fail to see my point.
not surprised. you need to let go of which team it was and just see it as it is. We beat an NFL team. That’s as simple as it is. Meaning, we can beat any other NFL team as well. If the logic you guys are using applied to last year, hell, we should’ve been a playoff team, we beat the superbowl champs. But that’s just not how it works, and it’s the same in reverse.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 12:37 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
Yes, I get that point
But I don’t agree with it. Of course you can beat any team in the NFL. That’s the ‘Any Given Sunday’ principle, but that doesn’t mean it’s likely to happen.
Similarly, it’s much easier to stop the Browns offense than it is the Titans offense. It just is. Which obviously means that it’s more impressive for a defense to stop the Titans than it is for a defense to stop the Browns.
Does that mean they’re guaranteed to do that again? No, but it means that the team that stopped the better opponent is more likely (in isolation) to be better than the other team.
I like analysing the team and seeing what a performance really means for the overall strength of this team. And you can’t do that without taking into account how an opponent played and what their qualities are.
Sander...
it’s impossible to say what the quality of these offenses are at this point.
Boom. Outta Here.
by Ryan Gilliss on Sep 21, 2010 12:44 PM EDT up reply actions
Not really
You can get some pretty good indications. Like, for instance, that Matt Moore is an absolutely horrible quarterback this season. Or that stopping Chris Johnson is pretty impressive. The fact that the Titans hung up 38 points in week one makes the Steelers shutting them out a lot more impressive than the Bucs shutting out an offense that put up just 14 points the week after. Similarly, the Falcons hung up 41 points on the Cardinals.
No it’s not the full picture, and the quality of the teams going forward will become clearer, but that doesn’t mean you can’t say something about these teams at this point of the season.
The Saints are horrible offensively...
are you comfortable with saying that will hold up over the year?
Boom. Outta Here.
by Ryan Gilliss on Sep 21, 2010 12:52 PM EDT up reply actions
I don't think they looked horrible offensively at all
Against the Vikings they put up very few points but that was more due to the way they approached the game than the quality of their offensive performance. In the second half they simply started to chew clock.
As for their performance against the 49ers, not as good as expected no. But their offense looking ‘horrible’? Not at all.
Against what is likely to be a really good run defense
Given their run defense last year.
But yes, they looked worse than expected. But horrible? No. They still put up 25 points and 287 total yards.
They have struggled to beat two teams that are now 0-2...
including a team that lost by 25 points to the Seattle Seahawks, which lost by 25 to the Broncos.
Boom. Outta Here.
by Ryan Gilliss on Sep 21, 2010 1:33 PM EDT up reply actions
I wouldn't say they struggled against the Vikings, I don't think they ever looked like they were losing that game
They did struggle against the 49ers, which was a real shock. The 49ers I saw last night looked nothing like the 49ers I saw against the Seahawks. Except for Michael Crabtree.
Teams can turn it around fairly quickly in this league or have fluky performance in either direction.
They won by 5 points...
against Minnesota
Boom. Outta Here.
by Ryan Gilliss on Sep 21, 2010 1:37 PM EDT up reply actions
They never looked like losing the game
They won by 5 points because they simply stopped trying to score points in the second half, instead preferring to try to run the clock down as the Vikings looked so incompetent offensively that they didn’t need to put up points.
" they simply stopped trying to score points in the second half"
Boom. Outta Here.
by Ryan Gilliss on Sep 21, 2010 2:15 PM EDT up reply actions
Look at the playcalling
After going ahead on their opening second-half drive, they had two three-and-outs and then started running a lot more. They didn’t look good as an offense, but they did not look horrible. And Minnesota’s defense so far has actually looked very good.
Also, they had two missed field goals which skews it. 20-9 looks a lot better than 14-9.
At 14-9...
in 5 MIN left in 3rd QTR, NO gets the ball.
1-PASS
2-PASS
3-PASS
4-PUNT
NEXT Poss.
1-RUN
2-PASS
3-PASS
4-PUNT
NEXT Poss. (14:43 in the 4th)
1-RUN
2-PASS
1-RUN
2-RUN
1-RUN
2-PASS
1-RUN
2-PASS
3-PASS
4-PUNT
NEXT Poss. (5:32 left in 4th)
1-PASS
2-RUN
3-PASS
1-RUN
2-RUN
3-PASS
1-RUN
2-RUN
1-KNEEL
2-KNEEL
3-KNEEL
Boom. Outta Here.
by Ryan Gilliss on Sep 21, 2010 2:42 PM EDT up reply actions
The 4th consists almost exclusively of running out the clock
It’s less lopsided than I remembered though.
The play is even, I believe, if you take out the KNEELs
Boom. Outta Here.
by Ryan Gilliss on Sep 21, 2010 2:52 PM EDT up reply actions
How many of those passes were 2-3 yard screens designed to move the chains though.
Not saying Sander is right, but it is not as black and white as pass run.
"Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example." ~ Mark Twain
Yes it is
But it is not close if you look at just the 4th quarter, or if you add the scoring drive that occurred just before the 2 3-and-outs.
The Saints spent the entire fourth quarter running out the clock.
Hmm...
I disagree. To say that they stopped trying to score points is a little hyperbolic. No problem, though.
Boom. Outta Here.
by Ryan Gilliss on Sep 21, 2010 3:59 PM EDT up reply actions
I thought you were talking about the Bucs for a moment there
Who did not convince against a worst-team-in-the-NFL-contestant and had a defensive win against the atrocious Panthers.
Funny how relativism works both ways.
by Thomas Beekers on Sep 21, 2010 2:11 PM EDT up reply actions
that's another team
I believe we can beat when they visit Ray Jay.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 1:17 PM EDT up reply actions
according to you
those wins shouldn’t be impressive because of the “bad quality” of the teams they played. Arizona and Oakland? Wow, I’m impressed.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 12:52 PM EDT up reply actions
Beating Arizona and Oakland may not be impressive
But beating them the way the Titans and Falcons did sure was a lot more impressive than the way we beat the Browns or Panthers.
and yet those are still weak points to base any prediction off of. “The Falcons whalloped the Cardinals by 34 points….. we predict they’ll beat the Bucs by 20.” See how ridiculous that sounds. No support, just a random score based on things that have nothing to do with one another.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 12:59 PM EDT up reply actions
And now you're completely twisting my words
Because I never said anything of the sorts.
What I’m arguing is that the Bucs wins are less impressive than the Steelers wins because of the opponents both of them faced, including the performances of those opponents in other games. More specifically, I’m arguing that the defense of the Steelers looks a lot more impressive than the Bucs defense now, because of the opponents both of them faced, but you can also look at any statistic (points, yardage, turnovers, whatever) and the Steelers will look much better.
Yet your argument seems to be ‘Well anything can happen’.
Of course anything can happen. But I’m not interested in what can happen, I’m interested in the likelihood of something happening.
My pint is that the wins hold no means
to the outcome of the game. You seem to have trouble grasping that point.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 1:06 PM EDT up reply actions
No, I understand your point
I just don’t agree with it, and I’ve explained several times why. You seem to come up with no arguments for your position other than ‘Things can happen’. Which I never refuted, nor does it contradict any of my points.
We do have an argument going though.
My point is stats don’t matter, yours is that they can be used to find trends and probabilities as to what you’ll see in specific matchups. So my point is stats are worthless, and yours is they hold some meaning.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 1:15 PM EDT up reply actions
To say stats are worthless is a reach
If an offense has the propensity to score a lot of points often, the likelihood of them doing so increases.
Same goes for defense and their ability to stifle offensive attacks.
Quality of opponents help to more concretely determine what the aforementioned stats indicate, how good a team is on which side of the ball.
You mean to say that each games performance is independent, which is correct. However to disregard what a team is capable of would be negligent.
you are definately my favorite person to banter with on this site so far, lol. Hopefully I haven’t annoyed you, all of this has been in good fun for me.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 1:16 PM EDT up reply actions
i suppose this is true as well
same goes for the denses, and everything else. that leaves nothing to really analyze, which is how I like it, but leaves other people bored. I don’t like stats. I hate them actually. I look at dimensions when it comes to offenses and defenses. In my eyes, we have a lot more ways to beat you on offense than Atlanta or Tennessee have. Tennessee, it’s Chris Johnson. Atlanta, a shaky Matt Ryan, with an inconsistent Michael Turner as well. Here is see new weapons slowly coming together. Wait til weeks 9 and 10, we’re going to be so much better than we are at this point. I’m mostly excited to see prospects like Blount and Benn after the bye week.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 12:48 PM EDT up reply actions
Tennessee has a bunch of solid receivers they can throw to just fine
Atlanta’s ‘shaky Matt Ryan’ looked nowhere near as shaky against the Cardinals as he did agains the Steelers. Which is simply a testament to the strength of the Steelers D. Michael Turner was hardly inconsistent and looked great against the Cardinals.
Again, the same can be said of the Titans. They looked great in all aspects of their offense against the Raiders, but looked horrible against the Steelers. That’s consistent over both of the Steelers’ opponents: their opponents looked much, much better when facing other teams than they did when facing the Steelers. That suggests, just like recent history does and any expert analysis does, that the Steelers D is very good. And none of those things can be said about the Bucs.
And it’s not like the Steelers don’t have a recent history of having very good defenses in the same system and largely the same players. This isn’t just about these two games, but also about how those teams looked in recent years.
Tampa hasn't shown the ability to put up a great deal of points yet this season
Atlanta and Tennessee have. We don’t know if Tampa’s offense can put up 40 points in a game yet, hopefully they can. The Steelers have shown the ability to bottle up those offenses. Tampa has shown the ability to bottle up offenses that can combine their season scores resulting in less than 30 points on the season.
Its a good point nonetheless
But I think it’s still one we should take with a grain of salt with the counterpoints presented
Feeding the Monster since 1984
by brotherbrown on Sep 24, 2010 12:32 AM EDT up reply actions
maybe your right.
I doubt it though. We’re already one win away from 3. I see that one coming on Sunday.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 12:53 PM EDT up reply actions
ah
yes i did. brain fart, sorry. thank you for correcting me.
by waltermercier on Sep 21, 2010 12:57 PM EDT up reply actions
well, imma stop arguing now, gotta head out.
it was fun guys. Props to Sander, I got a further understand of your points and I appreciate the time you took to debate with me. See you guys around.
If we beat the Steelers
I can hear it now. Well, the Steelers didn’t have a decent QB, so the first three Buc wins are still against “easy” teams.
Those comments wont completely be unjustified
Though the steelers would not be an easy win, the previous two weeks would be. Either way, lets hope for a win.
You know what would be great
If we make a big play and we go with no huddle Just to stop them from making the next call on D It should at least get us down the field for a TD or FG but for me I rather run the ball and kill the clock and hope we move the ball for a TD or FG, why do I have a feeling that Pittsburg steelers going to run more then pass ummm I don’t no but watching atlanta game vs steelers I think we have a chance on them, if we win this one this would set the tone and let every body know we mean business…
IF U AIN'T A BUC GET THE BUC OUT OF HERE
by WE GOING TO THE SHIP on Sep 21, 2010 2:53 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
ummm I don't no
The caller said the boy, after removing the bulb from its socket, left the building and threw the bulb on the ground. When the bulb broke, the caller said the boy screamed "To be the best, you have to beat the best…"
by Top Gun Numba 1 on Sep 22, 2010 11:13 AM EDT up reply actions
Freeman's got potential....
If he gets that completion percentage up. Otherwise, we might be stuck with a more mobile version of Joe Flacco. So far he’s improving with every week, so there’s room for hope.
by Jimmycrackedcorn on Sep 21, 2010 8:30 PM EDT reply actions
Freeman's interceptions last year
Let’s remember that although Freeman threw 18 interceptions last year, he was up against a wall. He was trying to push his team ahead in points, which means taking some risks. In four of those games, he put the Bucs ahead in the fourth quarter despite all of those errors. But for the defense giving up those four leads, this was a 7 game season.
I like Freeman’s hustle. He has really taken the leadership role, has pushed this offense forward, and will be a great QB for this team for many years.
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